Gifted Hands International

Gifted Hands International, is a doula certifying organization based in IL that provides comprehensive training with a blend of holistic strategies and medical knowledge to empower and equip it's graduates to be effective members of the birth work community. Effective doula support can literally SAVE LIVES! Therefore, Doulas must be fully equipped to provide positive and effective support to their clients. Founded in 2019 by Shana Phillips after she enrolled in what was, at the time, the number one doula certification program in America. To her surprise, the affirmations given by the instructors did not match the education that was delivered in the three day training. Therefore, she entered the birth work community, certified but unprepared to support the families she was hired to serve. Her determination to serve effectively motivated her to locate additional trainings and research in order to bring her skills up to a level that would make a difference to the families she served. In 2017, she secured a position as the mentor program coordinator at Chicago Volunteer Doulas. In this position, she had the opportunity to mentor and educate new doulas that were previously trained, through similar organizations as her from all over the U.S. and Canada. It was then she discovered that the three-day training model was the standard for most doula certifying organizations. Shana could not understand why more time and effort wasn't being put into training individuals for such a vital role. Seeking to create a better option, Shana developed the G.I.F.T. ® training method which provides a more detailed, personal, and hands on approach to doula training. That along with an extensive curriculum provides a more comprehensive option that produces advance trained doulas.